Getting Re-Organized

Here is my latest find in the long battle to get organized. I found this metal bucket in the picnic section of the local discount store. The pail is split into four sections. The largest section made for napkins fits my treasured box of colored pencils. The pin cushions pictured are gifts from quilting friends and family. My latest came from Alaska when my mom and stepfather traveled there in June. The pin cushion is called a spice baby and boy does it smell good!

I live in an old farmhouse. The age is unknown but local county records show a building at this location as far back as 1876. The house had no closets until the late 1990's when the last homeowner added an addition of two large rooms and two measly closets. We have added a walk-in closet and many other storage ideas over the last few years. I use lots of storage boxes for my projects. My girlfriends have even started to give me boxes as birthday gifts. Another gift was the beautiful metal pail. I use it as the trash can next to my sewing machine. I love those gals.

Have I ever mentioned my love affair with Ikea? Let's just say I'm just glad the closest store is four hours away. Every time I travel to Chicago I find a reason to stop in either to browse or purchase something. Last time it was curtains, storage boxes (almost always on my list) and a fabulous colander that hangs from the edges of the sink.

One of my favorite items from Ikea is my cheese grater. If you have one of these I'm sure you agree with me. It has a rubber foot at the bottom of the bowl and a lid to seal up the leftovers. I live in Wisconsin and we eat a lot of cheese to support our local industries.

My other favorite buy is this group of shelving units. They were sold as modular units with a choice of doors or drawer inserts. They do a great job of hiding my clutter. Ikea marketed these as entertainment units. I think they totally missed the mark and should have sold these as storage units. I'm sad to say these were discontinued a month after I purchased them. I spent yesterday moving all of my inventory and shipping supplies to one location. I hope this will stop me from walking circles around the house trying to find what I'm looking for now. Wish me luck. Ever since I hit 40 I can't remember what I did 5 minutes ago. I hear it gets worse at 50. Yikes!